A large part of my job is to run an SQL query, save the results as a UFT-8 encoded csv file then import it into Excel for further manipulation and distribution.
When I import the csv file into Excel the first screen of the Wizard displays the default File origin: Windows (ANSI) and I often forget to change the Excel File Origin value to UTF-8. Is there a way to set the default to UTF-8?
Best Answer
I face routine tasks with a similar profile to what you described, and answers like those at How to set character encoding when opening Excel and Is it possible to force Excel recognize UTF-8 CSV files automatically? miss the point. Like yours, my goal is to set a default encoding so that I don’t have to scroll down to near the end of the drop-down list just to choose “65001 : Unicode (UTF-8)” every single time I’m opening a CSV or tab-delimited-text file.
The answer that works for me is given at Changing default text import origin type in Excel. It involves a registry edit (creating and modifying a value), so all the normal disclaimers apply (i.e., edit at your own risk and back up the registry before editing).
(quoted from Changing default text import origin type in Excel)
The instructions are from 2005, but I found that they worked for Office 2016 if where the directions say “11.0” (as the Office version), I assumed “16.0” instead. I also closed Excel (and Outlook, with its Excel previewer) before making the edit, but I can’t confirm if that’s necessary.